Can an honorable patriot come to the defense of a political opponent? I hope so.

Chris Christie finds himself in deep water over a political scandal in New Jersey. I have said very little about it because I am no Chris Christie supporter, and I find his views to be detestable on several fronts.

But as the hours have passed I find myself compelled to at least say something about the current squabble.

Unless I am a complete and utter failure at judging human character, I find Christie's words about the scandal to be believable. I watched most of the 2 hour news conference he conducted yesterday. He was open, forthcoming, and direct. There was congruence between his words and body language/facial expressions. He did not seem nervous whatsoever. He did not engage in evasive tactics.

Now, I have seen charlatans fool a lot of people. Some of these individuals are so good at what they do (deception) that they can appear to be honest while at the same time lying through their teeth.

I am not suggesting that I cannot be fooled. I have been fooled many times. But each time I think I have learned something.

In this case, I believe Christie is telling the truth that he knew nothing about the charge that he conducted political retribution against a local mayor in N.J. He fired two of his closest advisers because they lied to him about the scandal. A governor is informed only to the degree that he is served well by his advisers.

Obviously these advisers did not served him well at all.

So, I think the media, the pundits, the political establishment, etc. should give the man a break. If he is lying it is bound to come out sooner or later. But as of now, there is nothing that would suggest Christie is engaging in deception.

This in no way means that I support Christie for national office. My ideological/philosophical/political views are very different from that of Christie, for the most part. I would never vote for him for president, for example. But neither do I believe that it is honorable or civil to support the piling on by people with an ulterior motive for political gain. Even a political opponent is capable of conducting his/her life with integrity.